Approaching Health Disparities from a Population Perspective: The NIH Centers for Population Health and Health Disparities

Authors: WARNECKE, RICHARD - UNIV OF ILLINOIS, CHI; OH, APRIL - UNIV OF ILLINOIS, CHI; BREEN, NANCY - NIH; GEHLERT, SARAH - UNIV OF CHICAGO, IL; PASKETT, ELECTRA - OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY; Tucker, Katherine; LURIE, NICOLE - RAND COOPERATION; REBBECK, TIMOTHY - UNIV OF PENNSYLVANIA; GOODWIN, JAMES - UNIV OF TEXAS; FLACK, JOHN - WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY; SRINIVASAN, SHOBHA - NIH; KERNER, JON - NIH; HEURTIN-ROBERTS, SUZANNE - NIH; TYSON, FREDERICK - NIH; PATMIOS, GEORGEANNE - NIH; HIATT, ROBERT - UNIV OF CALI, SAN FRAN

Submitted to: American Journal of Public Health
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/15/2007
Publication Date: 9/1/2008
Citation: Warnecke, R.B., Oh, A., Breen, N., Gehlert, S., Paskett, E., Tucker, K., Lurie, N., Rebbeck, T., Goodwin, J., Flack, J., Srinivasan, S., Kerner, J., Heurtin-Roberts, S., Tyson, F.L., Patmios, G., Hiatt, R.A. 2008. Approaching Health Disparities from a Population Perspective: The NIH Centers for Population Health and Health Disparities. American Journal of Public Health. 98(9):1608-1615.

Interpretive Summary: Addressing health disparities has been a national challenge for decades. The NIH-sponsored Centers for Population Health and Health Disparities (CPHHDs) represent the first federal initiative to support transdisciplinary multilevel research on the determinants of health disparities. Using preliminary data, this paper illustrates how the novel CPHHD research paradigm combines population, clinical, and basic science to understand the complex determinants of health disparities. By partnering with community-based, public, and quasi-public organizations, CPHHDs already are disseminating scientific findings and guiding clinical practice in communities. In turn, communities and public health agents are shaping the research. The relationships forged through these complex collaborations increase the likelihood that the CPHHDs’ scientific findings will be relevant to communities and contribute to reductions in health disparities.

Technical Abstract: Addressing health disparities has been a national challenge for decades. The NIH-sponsored Centers for Population Health and Health Disparities (CPHHDs) represent the first federal initiative to support transdisciplinary multilevel research on the determinants of health disparities. Using preliminary data, this paper illustrates how the novel CPHHD research paradigm combines population, clinical, and basic science to understand the complex determinants of health disparities. By partnering with community-based, public, and quasi-public organizations, CPHHDs already are disseminating scientific findings and guiding clinical practice in communities. In turn, communities and public health agents are shaping the research. The relationships forged through these complex collaborations increase the likelihood that the CPHHDs’ scientific findings will be relevant to communities and contribute to reductions in health disparities.